U.S. patent number 8,136,275 [Application Number 12/597,639] was granted by the patent office on 2012-03-20 for display element for attaching advertising to the handle of a shopping cart.
Invention is credited to Horst Sonnendorfer, Franz Wieth.
United States Patent |
8,136,275 |
Sonnendorfer , et
al. |
March 20, 2012 |
Display element for attaching advertising to the handle of a
shopping cart
Abstract
The invention relates to a display element for attaching
advertising to the handle of a shopping cart or the like. The
display element includes a base body having a recess for inserting
advertising media in a flat manner and fastening elements for
fastening the display element on the handle bar, or the handle bar
mounts, of a shopping cart. The display element is made of half
shell-shaped parts, which in the joined state surround the handle
bar, or the handle bar mount, in the shape of an enclosed box
profile. The half shell-shaped parts are non-positively or
positively connected to the handle bar.
Inventors: |
Sonnendorfer; Horst (Puchheim,
DE), Wieth; Franz (Puchheim, DE) |
Family
ID: |
38608745 |
Appl.
No.: |
12/597,639 |
Filed: |
July 12, 2007 |
PCT
Filed: |
July 12, 2007 |
PCT No.: |
PCT/DE2007/001260 |
371(c)(1),(2),(4) Date: |
October 26, 2009 |
PCT
Pub. No.: |
WO2008/128490 |
PCT
Pub. Date: |
October 30, 2008 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20100058633 A1 |
Mar 11, 2010 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Apr 24, 2007 [DE] |
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20 2007 005 978 U |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
40/308; 235/1R;
280/33.992; 235/1D; 40/607.03; 40/660; 40/650 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62B
3/1416 (20130101); G09F 21/04 (20130101); B62B
3/1408 (20130101); G09F 23/06 (20130101); B62B
5/06 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G09F
3/00 (20060101); G06M 1/02 (20060101); G09F
15/02 (20060101); G09F 15/00 (20060101); G09F
3/20 (20060101); G09F 3/18 (20060101); H01H
13/702 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;40/308,660,607.03
;235/1D,1R ;280/33.992 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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8601412 |
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Nov 1986 |
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DE |
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0212557 |
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Mar 1987 |
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EP |
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1344705 |
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Sep 2003 |
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EP |
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0057543 |
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Sep 2000 |
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WO |
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Primary Examiner: Silbermann; Joanne
Assistant Examiner: Islam; Syed A
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Greenberg; Laurence A. Stemer;
Werner H. Locher; Ralph E.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A display element for attaching advertisements to a shopping
cart handlebar or a handlebar bracket, comprising: a basic body
having a recess configured for receiving a flat advertising medium,
the basic body having a first half-shell shaped side part and a
second half-shell shaped side part opposite the first half-shell
shaped side part and a half-shell shaped central part disposed
between the first and second half-shell shaped side parts which, in
an assembled state thereof, define a mounting recess having a
closed profile which surrounds the handlebar or the handlebar
bracket, the closed profile having an interior which tightly
surrounds the handlebar or the handlebar bracket and produces
mechanical contact with the handlebar or handlebar bracket; the
first and second half-shell shaped side parts and the half-shell
shaped central part being connected by webs which mate with
corresponding grooves.
2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the webs and
grooves define a positive locking connection.
3. The display device according to claim 1, wherein said recess
receives the handlebar or handlebar bracket in a positive locking
engagement.
4. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the mounting
recess is disposed coaxially with a central longitudinal axis of
the basic body.
5. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the mounting
recess is disposed offset from a central longitudinal axis of the
basic body.
6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the basic body
is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the handlebar or
handlebar bracket by a screw connection.
7. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the webs and
grooves have longitudinal axes which are parallel to a longitudinal
axis of the handlebar.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to a display element for attaching
advertisements to the handle of a shopping cart or the like,
comprising a basic body having a recess for inserting an
advertising medium such that it is flat, and fastening elements for
fastening the display element to the handlebar or handlebar
brackets of a shopping cart.
PRIOR ART
A display element of said type is known from WO 0057543 A1.
The display element described therein is universally highly
suitable for being retroactively fitted to a handlebar of a
shopping cart. The display element has, symmetrically in the region
of the longitudinal axis, a channel-like recess which is open at
one side. Fitting can be carried out easily and quickly. After the
known display element is fitted, the handlebar runs in a
well-integrated manner in said channel-like recess which is open at
one side, and does not interfere in the use of the shopping
cart.
It has been found that there is a demand for ever larger
advertising surfaces, and for such large advertising surfaces, it
is not possible to simply enlarge the form of the known display
element in scalar fashion, because this can result in problems with
regard to general stability and also because the display element
which has been enlarged in scalar fashion can no longer be fitted
to all types of shopping cart without interfering in the use of the
shopping cart.
If the known display element is enlarged in scalar fashion, it
correspondingly projects a considerable distance laterally at both
sides of the handlebar. In a standard situation of use of the
shopping cart, when the edge of the display element is gripped in
order to push or pull the shopping cart, large forces are generated
which can lead to damage occurring at the mechanically weakest
point of the display element, specifically where the channel-like
recess which is provided for receiving the handlebar runs.
Different types of shopping carts have different geometrical
relationships with regard to the distance of the handlebar from
moving parts of the shopping cart, for example the basket flap or
child seat. It is correspondingly no longer possible for a display
element which has been enlarged in scalar fashion to be fitted
generally to all types of shopping cart in such a way that the
handlebar can run in a recess symmetrically in the region of the
longitudinal axis of the display element.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Technical Object
The object of the present invention is to create a display element
which provides a large advertising surface, which is sufficiently
stable and designed such that a further region in each case
adjacent to the longitudinal axis can be used to receive the
handlebar, and which can also be fitted quickly and easily.
Technical Solution
The considerations which led to the solution according to the
invention embraced the realization that a display element which has
a closed box profile which completely surrounds the handlebar in
the assembled state has a corresponding degree of stability, and a
display element is easy and simple to fit if it is composed of
individual parts which in each case surround the handlebar for
example in the manner of half-shells and are then placed in
positively locking engagement. After the two half-shells are joined
together, they form a dimensionally stable box-like profile, in the
interior of which the handlebar runs.
Here, the box-like profile is shaped in the interior so as to
tightly surround the handlebar and thereby produce good mechanical
contact with the handlebar.
Advantageous Effects
By means of the design according to the invention of the new
display element, it is possible to use display elements with a
large surface on a multiplicity of types of shopping cart.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be explained in more detail below on the basis
of two drawings.
In the drawing:
FIG. 1 shows individual parts of the display element and
FIG. 2 shows the display element fully fitted on a shopping
cart.
FIG. 1 shows a side part 2 and the central part 3 of the display
element 1 in a perspective illustration. The side part 2 and the
central part 3 and also a further side part 2', represented here
merely by an arrow, are pushed one inside the other on the handle
of a shopping cart, and thereby form a stable unit.
The side parts 2 and 2' have dovetail-shaped webs 4 which can be
pushed into corresponding grooves 5 of the central part. The webs 4
and the corresponding grooves 5 may also have any other profile
which is suitable for producing a stable connection between the
side parts 2, 2' and the central part 3. The side parts 2, 2' also
have a recess 6 which can receive the handle of a shopping
cart.
The display element 1 is fitted to the handle of a shopping cart
firstly by placing the central part 3 on the handle of the shopping
cart from below. The side part 2 is subsequently placed onto the
handle of the shopping cart from above. The handle of the shopping
cart is now situated in the recess 6.
The central part 3 and the side part 2 are now connected to one
another by virtue of the webs 4 being pushed into the grooves 5.
The unit, which is produced in this way, composed of side part 2
and central part 3 is held on the handle without further auxiliary
means, which facilitates the subsequent fitting of the other side
part 2'.
The side part 2' is pushed onto the central part 3 from the other
side. As is the case with the side part 2, webs engage into grooves
in order to produce a fixed connection.
In the example shown, the recess 6 in the side part 2 and 2' is
illustrated as being precisely central. When the display element 1
is fully fitted, the handle of the shopping cart then runs
symmetrically through the display element 1 in the region of the
longitudinal axis.
For applications in which it is desirable for the handle of the
shopping cart not to run centrally through the display element, it
is provided that the recess 6 runs eccentrically in the side part.
It is possible, for different types of shopping cart, to provide
different side parts in which the recess 6 runs at a corresponding
distance from the center. In this way, it is always possible for
the display element 1 to be fitted in a manner suited to the
specific type of shopping cart.
The handlebar then runs through the display element 1
asymmetrically in the region of the longitudinal axis. As a result
of the possibility of varying the position of the recess in the
side part 2 and 2', it is possible to position the display element
in such a way that the edge cannot come into contact with moving
functional parts, and that sufficient space is still provided for a
child sitting in the child seat of the shopping cart.
In the assembled state, a stable profile composed of the side parts
2 and the central part 3 is produced by means of the web/groove
connection. Forces acting on the edge 9 of the display element 1
are absorbed by the box-shaped profile, and only a short lever arm
initially acts between the edge 9 and the side 10 of the box-shaped
profile. To further increase stability, a plurality of struts 11
are provided in the side part 2 and in the central part 3.
The box-shaped profile is connected to the handlebar by means of a
screw connection or clamped connection. Rotational locking is
provided in this way. In the case of a handle with an oval cross
section and a correspondingly likewise oval recess 6, the
rotational locking is generated by positively locking
engagement.
The side part 2 has an upper surface 7 and the central part 3 has
two upper surfaces 8. In the assembled state, the surfaces 7 and 8
provide a rest surface for printed material. The printed material
is protected from environmental influences by a transparent cover
(not shown here).
A groove 12 is provided at the edge region of the central part,
into which groove 12 the transparent cover engages. It is likewise
also possible for the side part 2 to have a groove 12a into which
the cover then engages.
To fit the transparent cover, the latter is firstly arched and
placed onto the surfaces 8. Since the transparent cover assumes a
planar form again on account of its elasticity, the edges of the
transparent cover slide into the grooves 12 at the edge of the
central part or alternatively under the grooves 12a on the side
part. In this way, the transparent cover is securely connected to
the display element 1 and simultaneously fixes the printable
material. The printable material is now situated under the cover
and is protected against removal.
FIG. 2 shows the display element 1 in the fully fitted state on the
handle 15 of a shopping cart 16. The transparent cover 13 under
which the advertising surface 14 is situated is inserted
substantially flush in the display element 1, and on account of the
fact that the cover 13 engages into the grooves 12 or 12a, the
cover 13 is well protected against willful removal.
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
The invention is industrially applicable in the field of
advertising and information on a shopping cart, a luggage trolley
or some other transport carriage.
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